An independent group of researchers analyzing the course of COVID-19 in British Columbia says cases are declining at about two per cent a day but children under 10 could now be more at risk of contracting the virus because they are unvaccinated. The experts in epidemiology, mathematics and data analysis from three universities in B.C. and the private sector say that age group had half the case rate earlier this year relative to those who are older, but that risk may rise. They say in a new report that the use of masks indoors and regional measures in areas with high case counts helped to stabi

York regional police say a small plane has landed on a toll highway north of Toronto. Const. Maniva Armstrong says provincial police called shortly before 11 a.m. and let the force know the plane was on Highway 407 in Markham, Ont. She says the plane took off from the Buttonville Airport, just a few kilometres away from where it landed. Armstrong says the plane appears to have suffered mechanical issues, but was able to land safely. She says there are no reported injuries. She didn't say how many vehicles were on the highway at the time.

Penticton RCMP say a 36 year old man was injured in a shooting in the Indian Rock area, north of Naramata on the eastern shore of Okanagan Lake. The Mounties say the victim was conscious and asked for help when officers responded to a report of shots fired outside a home Tuesday morning. Constable James Grandy says the shooting appeared targeted and drug-related. Anyone with information is asked to contact the RCMP.

The RCMP say 11 more people have been arrested at blockades set up to protest old-growth logging in the Fairy Creek area of southern Vancouver Island. They say nine of those arrested were conditionally released in Port Renfrew and the other two were released without being processed. Last month, a BC Supreme Court judge refused to grant forestry company Teal Cedar Products an extension of an injunction against the blockades, but the BC Court of Appeal granted a stay of that ruling until a full appeal next month. The Mounties say they have made 1,142 arrests since last spring, including 110 peo

The Vatican says Pope Francis is willing to visit Canada, as Indigenous leaders call on him apologize for the Catholic Church's role in residential schools. The Vatican says in a statement that the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops invited Francis to travel to Canada, and that he indicated his "willingness" to do so at an undetermined date. The development comes ahead of a trip to the Vatican that First Nations, Metis and Inuit leaders plan to take in December to meet with the Pope in hopes of securing an apology. The 2015 final report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Cana

British Columbia's top doctor says COVID-19 booster shots will be prioritized for front-line health-care workers, rural Indigenous Peoples and those over 70 because they're at highest risk of experiencing breakthrough infections. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says those groups and people who are most immunocompromised were vaccinated first and are getting to the point of waning immunity just ahead of flu season. She says the third dose will be given to those residents until December as part of a program already underway and appointment bookings will be offered based on the time s

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his new cabinet this morning and there are no surprise names from BC on the list but the shuffle has affected all but one of them. Vancouver South member Harjit Sajjan is out as defence minister, moving to international development and minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency. North Vancouver's Jonathan Wilkinson has been replaced in environment, instead taking on natural resources, while Vancouver Quadra MP Joyce Murray makes the biggest jump from president of the treasury board and minister of digital government to the fisherie

The final results from Alberta's equalization referendum show a split between the province's two major cities on whether it shouldbe removed from the Constitution. Overall, 62 per cent of those who voted were in favour of getting rid of equalization, including 58 per cent in Calgary.But 52 per cent of voters in Edmonton were in favour of leaving the system alone. A second referendum on whether to stick with daylight timeyear-round failed by the narrow margin of 50.1 per cent to 49.9 per cent.

Alberta's top court has agreed to hear a sentence appeal of a man convicted of killing three people but a hearing date has been delayed indefinitely.Derek Saretzky was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 2015 deaths of Terry Blachette, the man's two-year-old daughter, Hailey Dunbar-Blanchette, and Hanne Meketech. He was sentenced to life with no chance at parole for 75 years. His lawyer, Balfour Der, asked the Alberta Court of Appeal for permission to challenge the constitutionality of consecutive parole ineligibility periods. The Appeal Court says it will hear the appeal, but only afte